Want to add something very important for those of you who have been aggravated by focus and shutter lag. This is an extremely fast camera. It can keep up with toddlers! I am happier with it, with every new picture I take.
Isabel

I bought the A610 as an update to my beloved A80 mainly because I wanted a larger lcd. I have to state up front that my posted images are not straight out of the camera. They have been edited to bring out their best. The colors from the A610 seem to be less saturated than those from the A80 so I have often "enriched" them with a little curves adjustment. I believe the camera has greater noise reduction at higher ISOs than what (if any) was in the A80. ISO200 images, if properly exposed, don't really need any further noise reduction. The construction of the camera leaves something to be desired. The tiny door for the Secure Digital card seems vulnerable. There are two bright spots on the lcd which started out at the top of the screen, but are now down on the bottom. I understand others have seen this. I'm just going to ignore them. Most appreciated improvements over A80: Faster focusing, gain up of the lcd in dark situations, easier exposure bias setting,excellent auto white balance - amazing for tungsten, better video.